Today, the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) filed a fresh plea in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) seeking allotment of land for setting up an alternative landfill site. EDMC stated that there was an immediate requirement of land, as the Ghazipur landfill, which handles more than 13 million tonnes of waste, has already been stretched beyond its capacity.

“Due to non-availability of an alternative piece of land, garbage is continuously being dumped at the Ghazipur landfill. This, despite the fact that the existing garbage mound there has already crossed a height of 60 m [almost 200 ft],” the plea stated.

In its plea, EDMC also reiterated that it had been urging all concerned authorities to allocate vacant land that could be used as a new landfill site. Moreover, it urged NGT to put a ban on the sale and purchase of DDA’s vacant lands in East Delhi until the civic body allocated land for the landfill.

The green court has issued notices to DDA and the Delhi government on the matter. The hearings will take place on December 8.

EDMC informed the court that DDA had more than 400 acres of vacant land outside the designated Yamuna floodplains in East Delhi. “We are trying our best to avert collapses at landfill sites," said PK Khandelwal, chief engineer at EDMC. "EDMC, along with IIT Delhi, has decided to conduct a survey of the Ghazipur landfill slopes. However, the permanence of these measures is questionable. After all, for dumping daily generated waste, we need more land.”

However, this is not the first time EDMC has sought NGT's intervention for land allotment. The fresh sites need to be able to handle 2,300 metric tonnes of municipal waste daily.

Incidentally, about two years back, DDA had allocated 150 acres of land to EDMC in Ghonda Gurjan for a landfill site. However, the corporation failed to secure the necessary approvals for the site. According to official sources, EDMC was ready to set up the landfill site, but an NGT-appointed special committee (in charge of looking into matters pertaining to construction on the Yamuna floodplains) rejected the proposal.

After the collapse of the Ghazipur landfill site on September 1, Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal had ordered a ban on dumping waste at the site. DDA had then allowed EDMC to use its vacant plot in Rani Khera village in north Delhi as an alternative site. But residents of the nearby areas had protested against the decision, and waste dumping continued as usual at Ghazipur.